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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · plane · bound · spring · pitch · content · tear · present

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. spring — the season
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. present — there
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. capital — a city
  9. plane — a tool
  10. present — the time now
  11. bound — obliged
  12. present — a gift
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. spring — a coil
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bound — certain
  19. tear — from crying
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. capital — money
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com